With more devices in use at Stevenson High School, officials make upgrades to wireless network

Ronnie Wachter / Pioneer Press

A wireless access point is above the desk of Kate Hudgins, human resources assistant at Stevenson High School. The district is buying more access points to increase access to the web for students.

A wireless access point is above the desk of Kate Hudgins, human resources assistant at Stevenson High School. The district is buying more access points to increase access to the web for students. (Ronnie Wachter / Pioneer Press)

With every Stevenson High School student using school-issued iPads, along with their own cellphones, school officials recently decided to upgrade their technological infrastructure to try and make it easier for students to use the web.

Looking to address weaknesses in the Lincolnshire-based school's wireless internet network, district board members doubled the number of access points after officials determined that Stevenson's existing network had the equivalent of one access point for every 48 students, said Doug Kahler, information services director at Stevenson.

"Envision 48 cars merging into a four-lane highway," Kahler said. "The highway can only handle four lanes of traffic at a time, thus traffic slows down. Eventually everyone gets through, just at a slower pace. Adding an additional access point separates out the 48 students to 24 per access point, thus decreasing the traffic backup."

By doubling the access points, students should have an easier time streaming videos, using the web and applications for class, said Sean Carney, assistant superintendent for business at Stevenson.

"While we have plenty of bandwidth, they can't get to the internet because we don't have enough access points," Carney said.

Board members recently approved a $79,000 purchase to install 118 new access points, which doubles the school's current number, officials said. Stevenson is responsible for $39,000 of that cost after officials received a $40,000 grant from the Federal Communications Commission earlier this month.

Made by Cisco, the white disk-looking devices will be mounted to ceilings throughout the school, broadcasting wireless signals.

But to double their access points, board members also approved April 17 the purchase of new cable lines that are needed to connect the access points to Stevenson's existing system. The cost of the new lines cannot exceed $89,000, board members said.

The issue was not lost on some members, who pointed out that they needed to purchase actual cable lines to improve the school's wireless network.

"So, we have to have better wires to support the wireless?" board member David Weisberg asked rhetorically.